< Job 28 >

1 “Surely there is a source for silver, And a place for the gold they refine;
Truly there is a mine for silver, and a place where gold is washed out.
2 Iron is taken from the dust, And bronze [from] the firm stone.
Iron is taken out of the earth, and stone is changed into brass by the fire.
3 He has set an end to darkness, And he is searching to all perfection, A stone of darkness and death-shade.
Man puts an end to the dark, searching out to the farthest limit the stones of the deep places of the dark.
4 A stream has broken out from a sojourner, Those forgotten of the foot, They were low, they wandered from man.
He makes a deep mine far away from those living in the light of day; when they go about on the earth, they have no knowledge of those who are under them, who are hanging far from men, twisting from side to side on a cord.
5 The earth! Bread comes forth from it, And its under-part is turned like fire.
As for the earth, bread comes out of it; but under its face it is turned up as if by fire.
6 A place of the sapphire [are] its stones, And it has dust of gold.
Its stones are the place of sapphires, and it has dust of gold.
7 A path—a ravenous bird has not known it, Nor has an eye of the falcon scorched it,
No bird has knowledge of it, and the hawk's eye has never seen it.
8 Nor have the sons of pride trodden it, The fierce lion has not passed over it.
The great beasts have not gone over it, and the cruel lion has not taken that way.
9 He sent forth his hand against the flint, He overturned mountains from the root.
Man puts out his hand on the hard rock, overturning mountains by the roots.
10 Among rocks, he has cleaved brooks, And his eye has seen every precious thing.
He makes deep ways, cut through the rock, and his eye sees everything of value.
11 He has bound overflowing rivers, And the hidden thing brings out [to] light.
He keeps back the streams from flowing, and makes the secret things come out into the light.
12 And the wisdom—from where is it found? And where [is] this, the place of understanding?
But where may wisdom be seen? and where is the resting-place of knowledge?
13 Man has not known its arrangement, Nor is it found in the land of the living.
Man has not seen the way to it, and it is not in the land of the living.
14 The deep has said, It [is] not in me, And the sea has said, It is not with me.
The deep waters say, It is not in me: and the sea says, It is not with me.
15 Gold is not given for it, Nor is silver weighed—its price.
Gold may not be given for it, or a weight of silver in payment for it.
16 It is not valued with pure gold of Ophir, With precious onyx and sapphire,
It may not be valued with the gold of Ophir, with the onyx of great price, or the sapphire.
17 Gold and crystal do not equal it, Nor [is] its exchange a vessel of fine gold.
Gold and glass are not equal to it in price, and it may not be exchanged for jewels of the best gold.
18 Corals and pearl are not remembered, The acquisition of wisdom [is] above rubies.
There is no need to say anything about coral or crystal; and the value of wisdom is greater than that of pearls.
19 The topaz of Cush does not equal it, It is not valued with pure gold.
The topaz of Ethiopia is not equal to it, and it may not be valued with the best gold.
20 And the wisdom—from where does it come? And where [is] this, the place of understanding?
From where then does wisdom come, and where is the resting-place of knowledge?
21 It has been hid from the eyes of all living. And from the bird of the heavens It has been hidden.
For it is kept secret from the eyes of all living, unseen by the birds of the air.
22 Destruction and death have said: With our ears we have heard its fame.
Destruction and Death say, We have only had word of it with our ears.
23 God has understood its way, And He has known its place.
God has knowledge of the way to it, and of its resting-place;
24 For He looks to the ends of the earth, He sees under the whole heavens,
For his eyes go to the ends of the earth, and he sees everything under heaven.
25 To make a weight for the wind, And He meted out the waters in measure.
When he made a weight for the wind, measuring out the waters;
26 In His making for the rain a limit, And a way for the brightness of the voices,
When he made a law for the rain, and a way for the thunder-flames;
27 Then He has seen and declares it, He has prepared it, and also searched it out,
Then he saw it, and put it on record; he gave it its fixed form, searching it out completely.
28 And He says to man: Behold, fear of the Lord, that [is] wisdom, And to turn from evil [is] understanding.”
And he said to man, Truly the fear of the Lord is wisdom, and to keep from evil is the way to knowledge.

< Job 28 >